Blood Trade

Memphis and the Mexican drug war

Thirteen bullet-riddled men with their hands tied behind their backs lie dead in a field near the town of San Ignacio in the state of Sinaloa, Mexico, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2008. Memphian Craig Petties is charged with being a major connection for drug traffic between a branch of the violent Sinaloa cartel and the Mid-South. (AP Photo)

This large brick of of cocaine seized in Queretaro is but a drop in the ocean of the multi-billion dollar drug business. Photo Courtesy of Noticias newspaper, Queretaro, Mexico.

Craig Petties is shown in custody shortly after his arrest in Queretaro, Mexico in January 2008. Photo credit: Courtesy PGR (Procuraduria General de la Republica)

Mexican officials displayed these cases of expensive watches seized from Craig Petties' home at a news conference. Photo credit: Courtesy PGR (Procuraduria General de la Republica)

Cash seized by Mexico's army is displayed to the press in Mexico City, Sept. 18, 2008. According to Mexico's Defense Department, the money belongs to members of the Sinaloa drug cartel and was seized in a house in the Pacific coastal state of Sinaloa, making it the second largest cash seizure in Mexican history with an estimated US $26.2 million in cash. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

A family attends a mass to celebrate the feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe in the neighborhood of Santa Maria Magdalena in Mexico's Queretaro state. The Virgin of Guadalupe is a vision of Mary whom many Mexicans turn to for help and protection.

Suspects as are presented to the media at the federal police headquarters in Mexico City, Friday, April 23, 2010. The men are suspected of working for Jose Gerardo Alvarez Vazquez, who police say is battling for control of the Beltran Leyva cartel. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

This bullet-riddled wall in an apartment in Cuernavaca, Mexico, testifies to the violence that erupted there Dec. 17, 2009. A Mexican navy official said that alleged drug cartel chief Arturo Beltran Leyva and members of his cartel were slain inside the apartment during a shootout with marines. (AP Photo/Antonio Sierra)

An unidentified man is carried by Marines during an operation in Cuernavaca, Mexico, Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009. A Mexican navy official said alleged drug cartel chief Arturo Beltran Leyva was killed in a shootout with sailors Wednesday. Two hundred sailors raided an upscale apartment complex and killed a reputed Mexican drug cartel chief in a two-hour gun battle (AP Photo/Televisa via APTN)

Soldiers escort an unidentified suspect who was arrested during an operation in Cuernavaca, Mexico where drug cartel chief Arturo Beltran Leyva and six members of his organization were slain in the shootout with Mexican federal forces. (AP Photo/Miguel Tovar)

Marines walk by the vehicle carrying the body of fallen comrade Melquisedet Angulo in Pariaso, Mexico, Monday, Dec. 21, 2009. Angulo died in a gunbattle with forces of alleged drug kingpin Arturo Beltran Leyva, who was killed along with six of his men. After the funeral, assassins broke into a house and killed the Marine's mother, his aunt, a sister, and a brother (AP Photo/Carlos Sobrino)

A man prays at the Chapel of Most Sainted Death in the town of Pedro Escobedo in Queretaro state. The Catholic Church, which is dominant in Mexico, does not recognize the worship of Saint Death, or Santa Muerte, who some associate with drug traffickers.

Children cheer a masked wrestler during a nighttime match at a fair in Queretaro, Mexico. Queretaro's statewide murder rate is about one-fifth that of Memphis.

Julio Valentin, 21, spits flaming gasoline for tips on a busy street in Queretaro as his 19-year-old wife and 4-year-old child wait nearby. "If we're here all day, we get 200 or 300 pesos," he said. That's roughly equivalent to $16 to $24. Valentin says he has a brother who lives in Nashville. Even though Queretaro is one of the most prosperous cities in Mexico — a center for higher education and manufacturing — many street vendors and performers, including breakdancers and magicians, hustle to earn a living.

A hand grenade punched this softball-size hole in the sidewalk outside a police outpost station in Celaya in the Mexican state of Guanajuato. The November 2009 attack was blamed on criminal organizations trying to terrorize authorities in this town, just a 25-minute drive from Queretaro, a city known for a low crime rate. Mexico's drug gangs maintain a leg up on the authorities through a combination of violence and corruption.

A girl sells snacks on a busy street in Queretaro. Her clothing identifies her as a Mennonite, a member of a Protestant group that emphasizes simple living. Even though Queretaro is one of the most prosperous cities in Mexico, many street vendors and performers, ranging from breakdancers to magicians, hustle to earn enough to eat.

A 20-year-old drug rehab patient curls into a fetal position as part of a relaxation exercise in a morning yoga class at Clinica Vida, a high-end treatment center in Queretaro state. He says he financed his use of cocaine and other drugs by stealing from a safe that belonged to his father, a businessman. Mexican drug cartels have increased sales within the interior of the country, but most addicts can’t afford to go to clinics like this, where a stay can cost as much as $5,400. The clinic director says they sometimes don’t charge.

Boys walk by an armed official in Celaya in the Mexican state of Guanajuato, near the place where two grenades were hurled at a police outpost in November 2009. No one was hurt. Celaya is much more dangerous than Queretaro, which has a reputation for safety and is only 25 minutes away by car. Some say the difference is that drug cartels have agreed to keep Queretaro safe.

Police employ heavy security measures as they transport at least seven men who were detained carrying grenades and high-powered rifles in Mexico City, Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2008. According to Mexico City's Public Safety Department, the men are alleged members of the Sinaloa drug cartel. (AP Photo)

Joaquin Guzman Loera, alias "El Chapo (Shorty)” is the head of Sinaloa Cartel. Guzman is reported to be worth between $1 billion and $12 billion and was named by Forbes Magazine as one of the 67 "World's Most Powerful People" in 2009. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes

Bullets are on display during the presentation to the media by federal police of alleged members of the Sinaloa drug cartel, headed by Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, in Mexico City, June 10, 2009. The two suspects, Jose Alfonso Sanchez and Miguel Angel Piedra Gallardo, not in picture, were arrested in Durango, Mexico. (AP Photo/Miguel Tovar)

Victims with their hands tied behind their backs lie dead in a field near the town of San Ignacio in the Pacific state of Sinaloa, Mexico, Thursday, Dec. 4, 2008. The Reuters news agency quoted local news media as saying that all 13 victims in the drug-related executions were teenagers. (AP Photo)

A federal police sniper looks out from a helicopter during patrol over Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, April 8, 2010. The federal police are taking the lead of the city's security which was headed by the army in recent months. (AP Photo/Guillermo Arias)

An anti-air--craft machine gun, the first weapon of its kind seized in Mexico, is displayed to the media at a police base in Mexico City, April 14, 2009. Police on a routine patrol detained a 20-year-old woman guarding an arsenal, allegedly belonged to a group linked to the powerful Beltran Leyva drug cartel, at a house in northern Sonora state. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

Niko Shatzi relaxes at Clinica Vida, a high-end treatment center in Queretaro state. Mexican drug cartels have increased sales within the interior of the country, but most addicts can't afford treatment at posh clinics like this one. Cartels sometimes refer drug-addicted officers to the clinics for treatment.

Covered with a shirt, the body of Claudia Mora sits on a chair where she was killed at a race track on the outskirts of Mexican border town Ciudad Juarez, Sunday, April 11, 2010. Police later found a message allegedly from the Juarez drug cartel claiming responsibility for the murder. Violence from cartels battling for this coveted drug route into the U.S. has claimed over 5,000 lives since 2008. (AP Photo/Guillermo Arias)

Suspected members of the Zetas, an armed group, lie dead following a June 26, 2009, shootout with police in Apaseo el Alto in Guanajuato state, central Mexico, not far from where Memphian Craig Petties was arrested in January 2008. Authorities said police killed 12 gunmen that day in a clash in which criminals used assault rifles and grenades. Police later discovered a mass grave where more bodies were hidden.

Courtesy Noticias newspaper in Queretaro

The January 2008 arrest of Craig Petties in the Mexican city of Queretaro made headlines there. This image is from Noticias newspaper in Queretaro.

Mario McNeil, 34, killed March 16, 2007 A gunman walked into Divine Wings and Bar at 3279 Kirby Parkway and fired several shots, fatally wounding McNeil and hitting another man. Authorities say Petties and others saw McNeil as a threat. An affidavit says McNeil died because he owed money to the group.

Antonio Allen, 32, killed April 21, 2002 Allen was shot several times as he sat in his car at 178 West Dison. Petties and others allegedly believed Allen was cooperating with law enforcement.

Mario Stewart, 28, killed March 22, 2005 Stewart was shot in his garage at 4827 Callaway Hills while his young children were in the house. Authorities say Stewart died because he was a federal informant.

Latrell Small, 32, killed around Aug. 9, 2004 Small was found shot dead in a car at 6040 Black Raven in Hickory Hill. Authorities believe Small’s killing was in retaliation for the non-fatal shooting of a member of the Petties organization.

Kalonji Griffin, 25, killed around Aug. 9, 2004 Griffin was in the car with Latrell Small and was killed along with him.

Marcus Turner, 30, killed around Sept. 27, 2006 Craig Petties allegedly ordered Turner kidnapped because he believed Turner knew where to find a man who had stolen cocaine from the organization. Turner’s nude body was found in a ditch in Olive Branch.

This family photo shows Lucy Turner and her son Marcus Turner, one of six men whose killings have been attributed to the Craig Petties drug organization. Lucy Turner says people shouldn’t follow her son into the illegal drug trade. "It’s fast money, but it’s here today and gone tomorrow. You end up dead or paralyzed for life or in jail."

Photo courtesy of the Turner family

Marcus Turner (center) poses for album art for a recording by rap group Grenade Posse. He was later kidnapped and killed by the Craig Petties drug organization, according to law enforcement. Some of the group’s lyrics make references to drug trafficking. "Loose lips, they sink ships / especially when you’re state to state."

Lucy Turner's son, Marcus Turner, is one of six men whose murders have been attributed to the Craig Petties organization. She believes that before her son died, he was trying to change. "I think that he was getting out of the dope business because I could see the change in him," Lucy Turner said. "He wasn't going the same places he used to go to."

Interstate 40 is a major route for cartels moving cash and drugs throughout the country, and officials with the Interstate Criminal Interdiction Unit try to catch them. Sgt. Kevin Helms talks with a driver about signing a consent-to-search form as Officer Donald Wolfe with dog Hydro examine the vehicle, which was stopped because of its heavily tinted windows. After dogs showed interest, officers searched the car thoroughly but didn't find anything. They released the driver and a passenger.

This house in the Riverview neighborhood in South Memphis was used by the Craig Petties organization, according to law enforcement. Petties grew up nearby.

Neighbors walk by the house in the upscale Milenio III neighborhood in Queretaro, Mexico where Memphian Craig Petties was arrested in January 2008. It's unclear how long Petties and his family stayed in this house.

This photo of Craig Petties was taken by Mexican authorities shortly after his arrest in Queretaro in January 2008.